Rainy spring means gardeners look for volunteer help

Despite the rainy start, spring is in the air and the gardens at the library are bursting with new life. Thanks to the garden coordinators who keep these spaces so beautiful and functional for our community.

If you’re garden-minded and would like to volunteer, please let us know. Email.

If you’re craft-minded, please join us for two upcoming workshops: indigo dyeing on May 31 and kokedama (moss-covered planters) on June 14. Both are part of a Japanese cultural series based on a grant from the Japan Foundation.

Programs for kids

Preschool story time
Tuesdays, 10 a.m.
Come to the Charlotte Library for preschool stories, crafts and activities. No registration required. Age 2 and over.

Preschool free play
Wednesdays, 10 a.m.
Play in the preschool years enables children to explore and make sense of the world around them, as well as to use and develop their imagination. Explore the sensory table, sorting, playing with blocks, playdoh — these are a few of the open-ended projects planned for Wednesday morning play-based learning at the Charlotte Library.

Book some artwork
Wednesdays, thru May 28, 2 p.m.
Rebecca Lindy Coll leads an after-school session using old books to create new crafty masterpieces for Wildcard Wednesdays. For grades 5 and up. Space limited; call or email to inquire.

Baby Time
Thursdays, 9:30 a.m.
An unstructured hour for parents, caregivers and babies to play, explore books and chat in the young children’s area. Ages birth to 18 months.

Let’s Lego
Saturdays, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
Drop-in for Lego free play. We’ll have loads of Lego bricks out, along with some books and prompts for inspiration. For all ages. Please note: Children under 10 must be accompanied by an adult.

Programs for adults

Stillwater meditation
Saturdays, 9 a.m. (no meeting April 26)
Poetry and meditation are offered freely and in person to the Charlotte community. Come for quiet reflection, contemplation and gentle meditation instruction. Respect for all beings and faiths is a foundational quality of our time together. Beginning and experienced meditators are welcome.

Thursday book club
Thursday, May 15, 7:30 p.m.
The Thursday book club is reading “Rough Sleepers,” the story of Jim O’Connell, who graduated from Harvard Medical School and was nearing the end of his residency at Massachusetts General when the hospital’s chief of medicine made a proposal: Would he defer a prestigious fellowship and spend a year helping to create an organization to bring health care to homeless citizens? That year turned into O’Connell’s life’s calling. Tracy Kidder spent five years following O’Connell and his colleagues as they worked with thousands of homeless patients. O’Connell navigates the city streets at night, offering medical care, socks, soup, empathy, humor and friendship to some of the city’s most endangered citizens. Copies available at the circulation desk.

Mystery book group
Monday, May 19, 10 a.m.
In “The Poacher’s Son,” game warden Mike Bowditch returns home one evening to find an alarming voice from the past on his answering machine — his father Jack, a hard drinking womanizer who makes his living poaching illegal game. An even more frightening call comes the next morning from the police; they are searching for the man who killed a beloved local cop the night before, and his father is their prime suspect. Jack has escaped from police custody, and only Mike believes that his tormented father might not be guilty. Copies available at the circulation desk.

Food waste prevention program
Tuesday, May 20, 7 p.m.
Wasting food is expensive. Every year, Americans lose more than $218 billion on wasted food. Join Anne Bijur from the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation for a conversation about preventing food waste to save money, fight hunger and protect our environment.

Better Together book club
Wednesday, May 21, 7:30 p.m.
Join this open group that discusses books related to parenthood, which will be discussing Claire Keegan’s multi-award-winning, bestselling novel “Small Things Like These.” In 1985 in an Irish town, during the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal and timber merchant, faces his busiest season. As he does the rounds, he feels the past rising up to meet him and encounters the complicit silences of a people controlled by the church. Copies available at the circulation desk. Ebook and audiobook available on Hoopla. Join in person or on Zoom.

Beautiful Blues
Saturday, May 31, 10 a.m.-noon
Indigo enthusiast Toby Goldsmith’s indigo-dyeing workshop will introduce the art and process of dyeing with the indigo plant. Participants will design their own small piece and dip dye it in the prepared vat. No experience necessary. For all ages 10 and up. Space is limited, email to let the library know if you’d like to join. Presented as part of a Japanese cultural series based on a grant from the Japan Foundation.

Kokedama workshop
Saturday, June 14. 10-11 a.m.
Try your hand at the Japanese art of growing plants in a moss-covered ball of soil. Make your own to take home. For ages 10 and up. Space is limited; please email to let us know if you’d like to join us. Also presented as part of a Japanese cultural series based on a grant from the Japan Foundation.

Recurring programs

Book chat
Wednesdays, 3 p.m.
Meet each week to discuss new books, old books and books we might have missed. Each week, library director Margaret Woodruff selects a theme and highlights related titles from the library collection. No registration necessary.

Crochet & knit night
Wednesdays, 5-6:30 p.m.
Join in a casual weekly session of crocheting and chatting, knitting and catching up. Bring your project or start a new one with yarn and needles available at the library, along with plenty of books to instruct and inspire. For teens and adults.

Library contact information:
Margaret Woodruff, director
Cheryl Sloan, youth services librarian
Susanna Kahn, tech librarian
Phone: 802-425-3864
Email

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The Charlotte Library Board of Trustees meets the first Thursday of each month at 6 p.m., unless rescheduled following the Opening Meeting Law. Contact the library or visit the library website for more information.